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Edited by Jeff Jones
Jan Ullrich has just finished the first part of his pre-season preparation in South Africa, flying back from Cape Town today to spend Christmas with his family in Germany. According to his personal website, janullrich.de, for the last three weeks he has trained in four day blocks of up to 120/160/200 kilometres each day, followed by a recovery day on the fourth day (60 km).
"I feel great," he writes. "Contrary to previous years I didn't get stuck into the first preparatory phase like Niki Lauda. After a holiday I always felt unbelievably strong. But the strength was gone after a short time, and I was pedalling at the limit of my power, when the first races were starting."
"This time my coach Peter Becker is making sure that I am not at the start of the season with full power, building my form slowly up to my season start in Qatar. I've decided to participate in the first race in the Emirate from January 21-25."
Ullrich had previously nominated the Vuelta a Valencia as his first race of the season, but decided to start earlier to give himself the best possible chance to be in form and at the right weight for the 2002 Tour de France.
A panel of 2,000 sports journalists has voted Erik Zabel (cycling) and Hannah Stockbauer (swimming) as the German sportspeople of the year, during a program screened on ZDF television on Saturday. Zabel, who finished number one on the UCI rankings and won the green jersey in the Tour de France for the sixth time, was given 2663 points, well ahead of Bayern goalkeeper Oliver Kahn (2196) and Formula 1 World Champ Michael Schumacher (1978).
The German football team Bayern München, winners of the Champion's League in 2001, the German championship and the World Cup for clubs, were voted as the best team of the year.
Spanish cyclist Oscar Sevilla has lent his support to the cause of children with cancer, speaking in Albacete for the Asociación de Familias de Niños Oncológicos (Association of Families of Children with Cancer). Sevilla read out a manifesto in the plaza of Altozano de Albacete where he asked that young cancer sufferers be given the same opportunities for treatment, regardless of where they were born.
The manifesto also requested that the age restriction for admission to specialised pediatric cancer units be lowered from its 18 year limit. Also that the children who recover from the disease be valued for detection and rehabilitation of cancer. Finally, that more resources be placed into registering new cancer diagnoses, so that the situation can be evaluated on a regular basis to see if treatment is having an effect.
Swede Magnus Backstedt has signed for Danish Team Fakta. Backstedt has mainly served as leadout man for Stuart O'Grady in Credit Agricole. He won a stage in the Tour de France in 1998, and the same year he was also 7th in Paris-Roubaix and was for a while in the top 100 on the UCI list at age 23. Injuries to his knee troubled him in the following seasons, and he was not offered a new contract with Credit Agricole for 2002. Now fully recovered, the giant Swede is expected to do well in the spring classics as well as flat stages.
Team Fakta is also renewing the contract of sprinter Allan Bo Andresen. He suffered from glandular fever in the early part of the season but managed put in some good results in later races. He will be on the team for the Tour de Langkawi in Malaysia early next year.
With Mikael Kyneb and Jakob Gram Nielsen quitting, the team still has one seat open and one more rider will be engaged before the year's end, which means that the team will have 15 riders for next year.
Five time World Cyclo-cross Champion Roland Liboton has commented about recent stories in the Belgian press that Mario De Clercq may take over as the Belgian national cyclo-cross coach after Eric De Vlaeminck retires.
"I am a five time World Champion and in our country I followed on from Eric De Vlaeminck (seven time World Champion)," he said according to Belga newsagency. "Why don't they consider me? That hurts, because I also have ambitions for the job. I will speak to KBWB president Laurent De Backer about this."
Bart Wellens has extended his contract with the specialist cyclo-cross team SpaarSelect. He has signed until December 31, 2004, and will have Erwin Vervecken, Peter Van Santvliet and Wim de Vos as teammates next season.
What was the best performance of 2001? Who was the best rider? It's time for you, the readers of Cyclingnews, to tell us the stand-out riders, rides and equipment of the year. However you need to act soon as entries close December 31, 2001.
Go to our Reader Poll page to cast your vote for the Legend of Cycling; the Cycling Personality of the Year; Photograph of the Year; the best teams and male and female riders across a range of disciplines, and the best bikes and equipment.
Click here to vote now! Results will be announced in the New Year.
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Major Races and Events
September 7-29, 2002: Vuelta
a España (GT) - Preview, stage list
May 11-June 2, 2002: Giro
d'Italia (GT) - Preview, stage list, photos
July 6-28, 2002: Tour
de France (GT) - Full preview & official route details
December 8: Superprestige
Rd 5 (Cat. 1) - Erwin Vervecken
November 29-December 4: Six
Days of Noumea (6D) - Sassone/Neuville victorious
November 26-December 1: Six
Days of Zurich (6D) - Day
6 - McGrory/Gilmore/Schnider win
December 1: Melbourne
Cup on Wheels (IM) - Scott Moller, Keirin,
Sprint, Support
races
December 2: Cyclo-cross
World Cup #2 (CDM) - Sven Nijs again
November 24-December 3: Juegos
Deportivos Centroamericanos (JR) - Final results
December 8-9: Frankfurter
Rad-Cross (Cat. 2) - Alex Mudroch, UK
National Trophy Series #4 (Cat. 3) - Roger Hammond, Grote
Prijs Industrie Bosduin - Kalmthout (Cat. 1) - Bart Wellens, Int.
Radquer Obergösgen (Cat. 2) - Björn Rondelez, Trofeo
Mamma e Papa Guerciotti (Cat. 3) - Enrico Franzoi, Premio
Egondo (Cat 3) - David Seco, Irish
cyclo-cross championships - Robin Seymour
Results: local racing
Australia - CycleWest
Promotions Omnium Series #2, Eastern
Suburbs Summer Criterium Series, Carnegie
Caulfield Tuesday criterium, Southern
Cross Junior Track Open & Madison Cup, Manly
Warringah CC, George
Town Track Carnival, Carnegie
Caulfield CC, Randwick
Botany CC, Gold
Coast CATS CC, Caesar's
Illawarra CC, Caesar's
Illawarra (track)
Denmark - Danish
cyclo-cross Post Cup #3
Italy - Gran
Premio Città di Bassano
Luxembourg - GP
De Kopstal
New Zealand - Cyco
Criterium series
Spain - Elorrio
cyclo-cross
USA - Georgia
Cross Series Championship, Chimborazo
Grand Prix cyclo-cross, Boulder
Cross Rd 6, New
Mexico State Cyclo-x Champs, Sorrento
Cyclo-x & California State Champ's, Boulder
Cross Rd 5, Verge
New England series, Northampton
CC Cyclo-cross Championships, Chris
Cross International CycloCross
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Tales from the Peloton
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- Tony Cruz - back to his roots (December 7)
Marco Polo
Diary - Tour du Faso - Part II - Nathan Dahlberg's report (December 3)
Tech
maintenance - Wheels - how to keep them true and tight
Tech letters
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Tech news - Navigators
power-tap, Headsets, Carbon cages (December 7)
Tech- Recycling
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Tech Reviews:
Egg Beater pedals; Park
Tool belt; Shimano shoes;
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the Chain - Dope planning and testing - From Willy Voet's book
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